Common Knowledge

The Shape of the World

Elysium is a vast and temperate world, renowned for its striking blue-green vistas when seen from above. Slightly smaller than Earth, it boasts 65% oceans, a slightly lower gravity, and a thick, buoyant atmosphere that makes airship travel both practical and essential. The weather is dramatic—storms can appear suddenly, and mists are common along the coasts.

There are three great continents:

• Vanaheim: Known for its fertile valleys, sprawling plains, ancient forests, and bustling heartland cities. Many of Elysium’s oldest and largest nations—including the Colonial Alliance and Freiheitland—are located here. Vanaheim’s rivers and lakes support dense populations, while its central mountains and border wilds remain untamed.

• Jotunheim: Rugged and diverse, this continent is home to highland steppe, deep forests, and broad deserts. It is famous for the iron-fisted Empire of Ruritania in the northwest, the merchant caliphate of Kalahari to the south, the scholarly and troubled state of Amareidonia in the east, and the proud kingdom of Arcadia on the western coast. Jotunheim’s climates range from icy in the north to blazing in the desert south.

• Muspelheim: The least tamed of the continents, much of Muspelheim remains uncharted wilderness, haunted by ancient ruins, monsters, and forgotten settlements. Most Elysians know it only through rumors and the tales of explorers.

Islands and Oceans:
Numerous islands dot Elysium’s seas, each with its own culture and destiny. Some, like Britannia and Yamato, are home to notorious nations such as Concordia and the Kobayashi Shogunate. Others, like Belrios and Froelia, are famed for artistry, resilience, or their role as waystations for seafarers and airship crews. The Njord, Aegaeon, and Varuna Oceans are highways and hazards alike—pirates, monsters, and storms are real dangers for any traveler.

Geography in Daily Life:
Most people live in or near the rich river valleys and coastal lowlands, where the land supports farming, trade, and dense populations. The further one travels from these centers, the wilder and more perilous Elysium becomes. Roads and airship routes connect cities and towns, but vast stretches of wilderness, mountains, and sea still separate the nations of the world.

The Skies:
Lower gravity and thick air mean that Elysium’s skies are filled with airships of every size and description—from humble courier balloons to mighty war zeppelins. Air travel is the lifeblood of commerce, war, and communication.

A World of Borders:
Everyone is conscious of borders—between nations, between wild and civilized land, between familiar and unknown. Maps are treasured, yet often out of date in the wilder regions, and tales of lost cities or unclaimed riches are always circulating in markets and inns.

A Living Planet:
Elysium is alive with both beauty and danger. Its forests teem with exotic flora and fauna, some of which are rumored to possess magical or psychic properties. Every region has its own legendary creatures and whispered warnings about what lies “just over the next hill.”

The Past in the Present

• Colonization: Everyone in the more civilized lands of the world learns that Elysium was settled nearly 400 years ago by colonists from Earth, seeking a new beginning after a devastating war. Most people have heard stories of the “Golden Age” when technology was wondrous, and life was easy.
• The Event: For those with an education, it is common knowledge that, in 2184, all contact with Earth and the stars was lost overnight. The old governments collapsed, and chaos and famine took over the world, followed by the “Times of Strife”—a period of civil wars, revolutions, and the rise of new nations.
• Reconstruction: Over generations, survivors rebuilt. New nations, cultures, and faiths emerged from the ruins. Many great cities, such as Nova Aurora and Kitezh, were rebuilt atop the bones of the old.
• Myths and Legends: Many people in the less scholarly parts of the world don't believe that Earth existed. Instead, they believe that Humanity has always been on Elysium. The stories about the past differ depending on the local flavor.

The Lay of the Land

• Patchwork of Nations: Elysium is not united. It’s a world of independent nations, each with its own laws, rulers, and customs. The largest—like the Colonial Alliance, Empire of Ruritania, Kalahari, Arcadia, Morrigan, Italica, and others—are known to all. Borders shift, treaties are signed and broken, and news of war or rebellion is a regular part of life.
• Neighborly Tensions: Most people know the names of neighboring nations, their reputations, and some stereotypes (Ruritania is feared for its discipline, Kalahari for its cunning merchants, Concordia for pirates, etc.).
• Local Loyalty: Loyalty is usually to your town, clan, or nation first. Foreigners are treated with a blend of curiosity, suspicion, and hospitality—depending on old rivalries and recent events.

Technology, Magic, and the Everyday

• Steam Age: Technology is a strange mix. Most townsfolk live in a world resembling the 19th-century Earth—steam engines, airships, telegraphs, and mechanical contraptions. Advanced “High Tech” from the colonization era is rare and mysterious; only the wealthy, powerful, or lucky possess even fragments.
• Etherium & Steam: Everyone knows that “Etherium”—a dangerous blue crystal from Erebus—is the lifeblood of industry, airships, and progress. “Steam” is the refined fuel that powers engines and lifts ships. Etherium is valuable, volatile, and strictly controlled. It can be dangerous if mishandled.
• Magic & Psionics: Miracles, psychic powers, and other unexplained phenomena are real—witnessed by enough people to be part of common folklore. Some call it “magic,” others “psionics” or “lost science.” Most folk have met a healer or seen a strange event, but true sorcerers or powerful psychics are rare, mistrusted, or even feared.

The People of Elysium

• Humans are the most numerous, found everywhere from city slums to mountain fortresses.
• Post-Humans: Dwarves (Dweorg), elves (Elohim), catfolk, gnomes, goblins, halflings, leshies, automatons, azarketi, fetchlings, and others—each with their own traditions and reputations. Most folk have heard tall tales or rumors about each ancestry. In cosmopolitan areas, diversity is common; in rural places, suspicion or awe of “the other” persists.
• Prejudice & Pride: Discrimination exists, especially against post-humans in conservative or isolated communities. Many post-humans have their own settlements or quarters in major cities.

Faiths and Festivals

• Religion is Everywhere: Most people belong to a faith—whether the Holy Church of Revelation, Disciples of the Prophet, Emissaries of Elysium, Followers of the Accord, the Exalted Order of Thelema, or a local cult. Faith shapes public festivals, laws, and even politics.
• Miracles and Heresies: Saints, prophets, oracles, and miracle-workers are part of living history. Some folk tell stories of the Voice in the Storm (Baltia), ancestor spirits (Olam Ha-Ba, Kobayashi), or the Angelic Revelations (Italica).
• Diversity: Religious diversity is the norm in cities and trade hubs; isolated towns may be dominated by one faith, and heresies or cults are an ever-present concern for authorities.

Dangers and Wonders

• Wilderness: Much of Elysium is wild and perilous. Monsters—dragons, krakens, mutated beasts—are real, and people vanish in haunted forests or uncharted seas. Every region has its legends (and sometimes, bodies to prove them).
• Ruins & Relics: Ruins from the High Tech era dot the land. Treasure hunters, scholars, and outlaws seek lost wonders or forbidden machines. Most people know to leave such ruins alone unless desperate.
• Pirates & Bandits: Air pirates, coastal raiders, and outlaws threaten trade routes and isolated villages. Convoys, militias, and mercenaries are common sights.

Economics and Trade

• Markets & Money: Trade is the lifeblood of Elysium. Local markets bustle with goods from across the world—spices from Kalahari, metals from Freiheitland, art from Belrios, and more. Currency varies by nation, but barter is common in outlying areas.
• Erebus & Etherium: Everyone knows that Erebus (the distant, cold world) controls Etherium. It is both feared and resented, but its Steam is essential for prosperity. Rumors of smuggling, sabotage, and black-market Etherium are common.
• Resource Struggles: Nations feud over mines, fertile land, and trade routes. Food security can be precarious, especially after a poor harvest or a trade embargo.

Law, Order, and Survival

• Justice Varies: Each nation (sometimes each town) has its own laws and punishments. Justice may be delivered by courts, elders, inquisitors, or duels. In some places, bribes and connections matter as much as the law.
• Travel: Roads connect major cities, but travel can be slow and hazardous. Airships are the safest and fastest means for long journeys. Most people rarely leave their home region, but adventurers, traders, and pilgrims are always on the move.
• Community Counts: Survival often depends on family, guild, or clan. Outsiders may be welcomed or shunned based on reputation, appearance, or past deeds.

The Big Picture

• Uncertainty: The fate of Earth, the other colonies, and the wider galaxy remains a mystery. The “Event” is still debated: was it a cosmic disaster, sabotage, divine judgment, or something stranger?
• Tensions: War always looms on the horizon. Treaties are fragile, and rumors of spies, rebels, or invasions circulate with every new moon.
• Hope: Despite hardship, most Elysians believe in the promise of a better future—whether through hard work, faith, invention, or sheer stubbornness. Tales of lost technology, hidden fortunes, or prophesied heroes inspire dreamers and troublemakers alike.

Everyday Life

• Festivals: Every nation and town has its own holidays—harvest feasts, religious processions, lantern festivals, and commemorations of survival or victory.
• Food: Diets are diverse—ocean fish, grains, root vegetables, exotic fruits, or hearty stews—depending on region and wealth. Airship taverns and market stalls offer a taste of the world.
• Stories: Elders and bards keep alive stories of ancient Earth, the colonists’ arrival, legendary heroes, and the monsters lurking just beyond the firelight.

In Short

If you live on Elysium, you know you are part of a world both ancient and new, wondrous and dangerous. You know the value of Steam, the power of tradition, and the uncertainty of tomorrow. You respect the land, your neighbors, and the mysterious forces—technological or magical—that shape your fate.

You have heard that the world can change in a single night. And you know, above all, that survival and hope depend as much on courage and cunning as on strength or faith.

Welcome to Elysium.